Advocate urges SC to take cognizance of Dharmasthala Burials, seeks SIT oversight by Retired Judge
New Delhi: Advocate Rohit Pandey of the Supreme Court has written to the Chief Justice of India requesting the apex court to take suo motu cognizance of the alleged mass burials in Dharmasthala and to place the ongoing Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe under the supervision of a retired Supreme Court judge.
In his letter dated September 16, Pandey stated that the extraordinary disclosures surrounding the case, including exhumed human remains, public testimonies, and corroborations by villagers, demanded urgent judicial intervention to ensure independence, transparency and accountability in the investigation.
Allegations and SIT probe
The letter recalls that sanitation worker C.N. Chinnayya had, in July 2025, sworn an affidavit before the court and lodged a complaint with police, alleging that he was compelled to secretly bury victims of heinous crimes and rapes over the past two decades in Dharmasthala. Acting on his disclosures, the Karnataka government formed an SIT on July 20, which has since exhumed skeletal remains, skulls, and clothing items from multiple sites.
Villagers, including Vittal Gowda, uncle of Soujanya, the 17-year-old rape and murder victim of 2012, have testified that they witnessed Chinnayya burying bodies in the past. Guided by his earlier disclosures, villagers reportedly led the SIT to Banglegudde, where several bodies are visibly present.
On September 13, a senior Karnataka minister confirmed publicly that a large number of bodies had been unearthed by the SIT in Dharmasthala, describing the findings as resembling a “battlefield.”
Concerns over pressure and intimidation
Despite the findings, Pandey’s letter alleges that the SIT is facing pressure not to exhume further visible bodies. He also raised concerns that lawyers assisting victims in approaching the SIT are being harassed by state police outside the SIT, terming it an attack on the independence of the Bar.
Demands before the Supreme Court
In light of these circumstances, the advocate urged the Chief Justice to intervene and ensure judicial oversight. The letter specifically requests the court to:
Take suo motu cognizance of the Dharmasthala mass burials case;
Place the SIT under the supervision of a retired Supreme Court judge;
Direct immediate exhumation and forensic examination of all visible remains under judicial oversight;
Ensure protection for witnesses, victims’ families, and assisting lawyers.
“Justice imperilled”
Pandey cautioned that when human remains remain unexhumed due to pressure and witnesses are silenced, “justice itself is imperilled.” He underlined that the intervention of the Supreme Court was the only safeguard to prevent truth from being buried and to uphold the dignity of the law.
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Kulkarni became victim of BJP conspiracy as he grew politically in North Karnataka: Shivakumar
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Bengaluru (PTI): Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar claimed on Friday that Congress MLA Vinay Kulkarni, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in a murder case, has become a victim of a BJP conspiracy because he was growing politically in the north Karnataka region.
Stating that he has faith in Kulkarni and believes he has done nothing wrong, he said the former minister will fight the case legally by filing an appeal.
A Bengaluru court on Friday sentenced Kulkarni and fifteen others to life imprisonment in the BJP leader Yogeshgouda Goudar murder case.
On Wednesday, Santhosh Gajanan Bhat, Judge of the Special Court for cases involving elected representatives, convicted Kulkarni and others under various IPC sections, including criminal conspiracy and murder.
“I respect the court. But there was a big conspiracy in this case. When the police were about to file a B-report, the CBI was given the case to harass him (Kulkarni). Vinay Kulkarni has become a victim of a BJP conspiracy as he was growing politically in north Karnataka,” Shivakumar said.
Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, he said Kulkarni has several legal options.
“I have spoken to his family. He swore on God and told me that he had not done anything wrong. I still have faith in him. I feel that he has not done anything wrong. He has an opportunity to file an appeal,” he said, adding that he stands with Kulkarni’s family and supporters and believes he will get justice.
The case pertains to the killing of Goudar, a BJP zilla panchayat member, in Dharwad on June 15, 2016. Kulkarni was a minister at the time. Hired assailants allegedly attacked and hacked Goudar to death in his gym in Saptapur, Dharwad.
Following demands from Goudar’s family and others, the then-BJP government transferred the case to the CBI in 2019.
Veteran BJP leader and former Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, under whose tenure the case was handed over to the CBI, told reporters in Chikkamagaluru, “I said what I needed to say when the crime happened, and what I said—that the guilty should be punished and justice should be served—has proven true.”
Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, BJP leader and MLC C T Ravi, reacting to the court order, said, “Justice delayed, but not denied.”
